Watchmaker's 05-29 Blog

[alysheba4]

really, you know more than i do. when i looked at the form i included the 4 but thought A.M. was the best horse.

[blackthroatedwind]

Originally Posted by alysheba4

really, you know more than i do. when i looked at the form i included the 4 but thought A.M. was the best horse.

It feels like she is better at Gulfstream, was even better there in 2011, and her subsequent NY races then were just OK. To me, she ran about as well as I expected.

Look, I'm wrong all the time. But, in this case I wasn't surprised.

[horseofcourse]

His confidence?? Does Caleb's Posse have any clue under the sun he lost the photos the last two races?? Does it really bother the horse that much to not get that winners circle photo?? How many freaking races in a row did Shackleford lose?? I'm sure I'll get roasted on this "confidence" of a horse thing like everything else I write, but I simply don't get it. AFter losing 8 million races in a row, Shackleford in his last two races beat two BC winners in a row in great races. Where'd that confidence come from?? I guess all that losing just gave him confidence I don't know why Watchmaker can't just apply that same logic to Caleb's Posse. But then again I want to see Bodemeister in the Belmont Stakes cause I'd like to see more matchups between him and I'll Have Another. I stand in the minority there probably too.

[pba1817]

GP speed figs have been notoriously high since they installed the new racing surface there a few years ago. Figures wise, just about every horse coming from there bounces. The same can be said about Oaklawn the past 2 meetings there, horses coming from Oaklawn have some inflated figures and seem to bounce hard once leaving.

[PatCummings]

Watchmaker referenced some comments about Pletcher and Awesome Maria in that blog post, and how Pletcher blamed himself. Thought it'd be interesting to compare Todd's pre-race comments to Dave Grening and post-race...

Pre-race DRF article about Ogden Phipps.

“Everything she’s done the last six starts, we’re hoping for more of
the same,” said Todd Pletcher, who trains Awesome Maria for Joyce
Robsham. “We know this is a very, very tough race. I have a lot of
respect for It’s Tricky and the other ones in there.

“Anytime you carry 124 pounds, you get a little nervous with that
impost,” Pletcher continued. “At the same time, she’s deserving of
topweight, given all of her success and her six-race winning streak.
We hope it can continue.”

http://www.drf.com/news/belmont-park...hipps-handicap

Post-race DRF article about Ogden Phipps

Todd Pletcher, the trainer of Awesome Maria, took the blame for his
mare's dull effort. "I think I did a really poor job preparing her for this race,"
Pletcher said. "We stayed in Florida too long, got rained on a lot,
missed a couple of works down there. Then I tried to make up for it
here and breezed her on a sloppy track . . . It wasn't her fault. I'll
take the blame for it."

http://www.drf.com/news/belmont-park...ob-done-phipps

I wonder if Awesome Maria would've been favored had Pletcher suggested she missed some works (as opposed to a slight freshening), then tried to make up for it, etc. Look, you can see in the form she didn't have a published work for a month after the Rampart win...but does it all suggest she was hurried?

At least all the TVG coverage from Hollyhump over the weekend made it incredibly clear that you should avoid Rail Trip at all costs in the Los Angeles. Now, granted, Rail Trip was never going to be say, 4-5, but Ron Ellis did everything possible to talk people off the horse, and an interview with Samantha Siegel did the same.

[Merlinsky]

Originally Posted by PatCummings

“Anytime you carry 124 pounds, you get a little nervous with that impost,” Pletcher continued. “At the same time, she’s deserving of topweight, given all of her success and her six-race winning streak. We hope it can continue.”

People, she was carrying around a backbreaking 124 lbs. Secretariat himself couldn't win dragging around that anchor.

Side note: can whoever approved "Cash for Clunkers" as a name be publicly flogged?

[NTamm1215]

I hate the weight argument, but why isn't anyone talking about It's Tricky carrying 122 lbs?

Originally Posted by horseofcourse

His confidence?? Does Caleb's Posse have any clue under the sun he lost the photos the last two races?? Does it really bother the horse that much to not get that winners circle photo?? How many freaking races in a row did Shackleford lose?? I'm sure I'll get roasted on this "confidence" of a horse thing like everything else I write, but I simply don't get it. AFter losing 8 million races in a row, Shackleford in his last two races beat two BC winners in a row in great races. Where'd that confidence come from?? I guess all that losing just gave him confidence I don't know why Watchmaker can't just apply that same logic to Caleb's Posse. But then again I want to see Bodemeister in the Belmont Stakes cause I'd like to see more matchups between him and I'll Have Another. I stand in the minority there probably too.

Does Watchmaker have any clue that stylists didn't go on strike in 1978? Someone take him to a stylist so he can have his mind blown.

[pba1817]

Originally Posted by Coach Pants

Does Watchmaker have any clue that stylists didn't go on strike in 1978? Someone take him to a stylist so he can have his mind blown.

Those dudes from DRF look like a bunch of 60's retreads...

Originally Posted by pba1817

Those dudes from DRF look like a bunch of 60's retreads...

It's a little disconcerting. Not trying to be shallow but come on. They're in New York City ffs.